News
Policy instruments & voluntary initiatives for reducing contentious inputs in organic farming
The RELACS project released a new scientific paper by Varga et al., 2022, analysing existing policy instruments and voluntary initiatives in…
23/03/2022
Plant health care
Commission delays proposal for Regulation on the sustainable use of pesticides
On 23 March, the European Commission was supposed to publish a proposal for a Regulation on the Sustainable Use of…
Expert on recycled fertilisers? Join our Task Force on Recycled Fertilisers
IFOAM Organics Europe’s Board created a Task Force on Recycled Fertilisers. This decision comes in the context of the “Integrated…
Soil Health Law: Organic movement’s contribution to public consultation
60-70% of soils in the EU are not healthy and the EU still lacks a comprehensive soil protection policy. In…
16/03/2022
GMOs
No risk assessment and labelling for eggs and hens of genetically modified origin?
Following an EU Commission statement, it can be concluded that eggs and laying hens that originate from genetically engineered hens…
14/03/2022
Food policy
Buy Better Food campaign wants to put sustainable food on all public plates
The time has come to make public food procurement a mainstream issue at European level. To this end, we participate…
The 7 key policy recommendations on sustainable food public procurement
The Food Policy Coalition’s policy recommendations on food procurement support procurement as a tool that contributes to the systemic transformation…
Latest IPCC report: Agroecological practices support food security
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has published its latest report Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. The…
02/02/2022
GMOs
New GMOs: What’s next for Europe & state-of-play legislative process
As covered in previous editions of our newsletter, the European Commission has been moving forward with plans to create a…
EU organic movement calls on Member States to provide reliable data on organic and other Farm to Fork targets
BRUSSELS, 2 FEBRUARY 2022 – As the first trialogue on the Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural Inputs and Outputs (SAIO)…
Trialogues on Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural Inputs and Outputs to start
On 10 December, the Council of the EU approved its mandate for negotiations on the Regulation on Statistics on Agricultural…
24/01/2022
Food policy
Have your say! European Commission public consultations on nutrition labelling & nutrient profiles
Until 7 March, the European Commission is consulting stakeholders on two public consultations: Revision of rules on information provided to…
Revised Directive for a Sustainable Use of pesticides expected on 23 March
The indicative calendar of the European Commission for the first half of 2022 mentions the launch of a “Nature restauration…
18/01/2022
Plant health care
Join pan-European testing for pesticide residues during #GoodFoodGoodFarming action month in October 2022
In the bodies of farm workers and city inhabitants, in people’s bedrooms and children’s playgrounds – pesticide residues at harmful…
The European organic movement welcomes opportunities promoting organic agriculture in the European Commission's promotion policy work programme
The European organic movement welcomes the special attention reserved to organic agriculture in the European Commission’s promotion policy work programme.…
Reaching 25% organic land in Europe by 2030: Ten priorities for the new EU Organic Action Plan
The European Commission is set to publish the next European Organic Action Plan (OAP) at the beginning of 2021. A…
Welcome note November 2020 newsletter
Dear readers, I would like to use this opportunity to look back on a turbulent year, marked with great successes…
Political hotspot November 2020 newsletter
The European Commission is set to publish the next European organic action plan (OAP) at the beginning of next year.…
Our suggestions for the new Organic Action plan
The Commission is set to publish the next European organic action plan at the beginning of next year and has…
18/11/2020
Food policy
Shifting urban food consumption & production: FoodSHIFT2030 webinar - 18 November 2020, online
FoodSHIFT2030 presented a webinar on how citizen-driven innovation can shift the way in which we produce and consume food. Among…
Joint letter calling for balanced speaker representation at forthcoming EU Agricultural Outlook Conference
IFOAM Organics Europe, Slow Food, European Coordination Via Campesina (ECVC), and others call for balanced representation in terms of speakers…
13/11/2020
Plant health care
RELACS project on track despite Covid-19: First digital annual meeting - 10-12 November, online
The RELACS project’s third annual meeting took place digitally 10-12 November. It demonstrated that research in all work packages is…
Interested to learn how public procurement can be a driver for a more regional, sustainable and healthy food system?
FoodShift’s Regional Lunch for All Lab is based in Avignon, France, and aims at shifting public procurement towards a sustainable…
How will the EU Green Deal change Europe’s food prices change? Join our colleague Silvia online to get an idea!
On 12 November from 15:30-17:00, Silvia Schmidt, our food policy officer, will take part to the online event “The Green…
The true price of food & its role in transforming the food system: FFA 2020 review - 26 October 2020
On 26 October 2020, our Director Eduardo Cuoco attended the Forum for the Future of Agriculture (FFA) event ‘Rewarding sustainability…
Political hotspot October 2020 newsletter
On 19–20 October, EU-27 agriculture ministers met in Luxembourg to adopt their general approach on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).…
CAP ‘reform’: Parliament's small steps not good enough for a green transformation of food and farming
BRUSSELS, 23 OCTOBER 2020 – This week, Members of the European Parliament voted on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and Agriculture Ministers reached an…
Organic Movement calls on MEPs to align the CAP with the Green Deal ambitions
IFOAM Organics Europe has sent a press release to all Members of the European Parliament as they are voting on…
The Commission’s first Farm to Fork conference – Review & highlights - 15-16 October 2020, online
The European Commission’s first Farm to Fork conference took place on 15–16 October 2020 and focused on how to build…
15/10/2020
Food policy
An Organic Action Plan: Commission roadmap and public consultation
It is possible to boost organic production and consumption through multiple policies. The Organic Action Plan (OAP) is one of…
Open letter calling for full alignment of the reformed CAP with the European Green Deal
Together with NGOS and national coalitions from across Europe, IFOAM Organics Europe urges the President of the European Commission, the…
Launch of the Green Deal call at the European Research & Innovation Days 2020
From 22-24 September, the European Research and Innovation Days, the European Commission’s annual flagship event, brought together policymakers, researchers, entrepreneurs,…
Replacement of copper in organic farming – First results of RELACS experiments conducted by ÖMKi
Copper is currently used as a plant protection product (PPP) and/or leaf fertilizer in organic and conventional farming in several…
17/09/2020
GMOs
Reveal of a detection method for a gene-edited rapeseed - What is the significance and why is there a controversy?
A regulation is only worth so much as it can be enforced. This is why on 7 September, an open…
First open source detection test for a gene-edited GM crop
This press release was first published by Greenpeace EU Brussels, 07 SEPTEMBER 2020 – Greenpeace, together with other non-governmental organisations,…
Farm gate nutrient budgets in organic agriculture
The RELACS project partners issued practical guidelines informing farmers about assessing the main nutrient flows in and out of their…
04/08/2020
Plant health care
Request for proposal: Conducting research on pesticide contamination in the environment and pesticide residues in organic food
IFOAM Organics Europe (IFOAM OE) is the European umbrella organisation for organic food and farming. We fight for the adoption…
Help us identifying the needs and knowledge gaps in organic fruit growing – Fill out BIOFRUITNET’s questionnaire
Plant protection against pests and diseases is a big issue for organic fruit growers, as fruit is a very sensitive…
European Patent Office: No patents on conventionally bred varieties
On 14 May 2020, the enlarged board of appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) has released an opinion that…
Press Release: IFOAM EU welcomes landmark decision to put organic at the heart of future European food system
BRUSSELS, 20 MAY 2020 – IFOAM EU welcomes the EU Biodiversity and Farm to Fork (F2F) strategies and the target…
Commission to publish Farm to Fork strategy on 29 April 2020... or will it?
The Farm to Fork strategy and the EU biodiversity strategy – both essential components of the European Green Deal –foreseen…
Organic in the SAPEA report
The recently published Science Advice for Policy by European Academies (SAPEA) report “A sustainable food system for the European Union”…
IFOAM EU calls for target of at least 20% organic land in the EU
The organic movement calls for ambitious targets to increase organic land and consumption in the EU ahead of the publication…
JOINT LETTER: European Green Deal needs to cut pesticides and switch to agroecology
Brussels, 31 March 2020 To: Executive Vice President TimmermansCc: Commissioners Kyriakides, Wojciechowski and Sinkevičius We are writing to you as…
How much and which natural inputs does the organic sector need? – A lively debate during BIOFACH 2020
A lively discussion on natural inputs suitable for organic farming as well as future obstacles and opportunities for the sector’s…
PRESS RELEASE: IFOAM EU calls for a target of 20% organic land in the EU
BRUSSELS, 13 FEBRUARY 2020 – As the European Commission is expected to release the Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies,…
30/01/2020
Plant health care
The organic movement and the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA) call for better regulation of natural origin plant protection technologies
IFOAM EU and the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA) published a five years roadmap for collaboration to promote the uptake of…